DPRK missile flies over Japan: Japanese gov't

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TOKYO, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) fired a missile early Tuesday, and the missile fell into the Pacific Ocean off Hokkaido after passing over the Japanese archipelago, said the Japanese government.

The missile was fired around 5:58 a.m. (local time) (2058 GMT) from the western coat of the DPRK towards a northeastern direction, and passed over Cape Erimo in Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido around 6:06 a.m. (2106 GMT), said Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.

The missile flew over 2,700 kilometers with the highest altitude at 550 kilometers high, and fell into the Pacific Ocean some 1,180 kilometers east of Cape Erimo around 6:12 a.m. (2112 GMT), said Suga.

He said that it was possible that the missile separated into three parts over the Sea of Japan, and the Japanese government is analyzing the situation.

He also said that the missile firing posed "an unprecedentedly serious and grave security threat" to Japan and Japan will work closely with the United States and South Korea to address the issue.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that the missile launch poses a grave threat to regional peace and security and Japan strongly protests against the missile launch.

He added that Japan is to call for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council and to call on the international society to cooperate and impose more pressure on the DPRK.

Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono reportedly said that the DPRK fired missile toward Hokkaido, not Guam, amid U.S. pressure.

He said that the missile flew over Japan without notice in advance and posed serious threat to the security of Japanese planes and vessels.

Following the missile launch, the Japanese government held a National Security Council meeting involving relevant ministers.